Memory Lapse
by Shimegami-chan
Summary: After a fall from a cliff, the Digimon Kaiser falls into a coma with only Daisuke to help him! Will Daisuke do it, at risk to his own life?
1. and maybe you were thinking about jumpin...

if i don't get this one started now, i never will... 

**Memory Lapse**

A flash of blue and burgundy flew over the cliff, falling with a loud thud to a ledge below. 

Blue was on top. "I've got you now, Chosen! Prepare to _die!_" 

Burgundy, though looking a little worse for wear, used his larger body mass to flip the caped assailant away. "Shut up, Ken! This is fighting dirty!" 

"It's all a game to me." The Kaiser sneered. "And you, my friend, are breaking the _rules!_" With a grunt he tackled Daisuke to the ground once again, screaming for one of his ringed Digimon to aid him. "Face it, Chosen, you're beaten!" 

Daisuke thrashed under the genius' light weight. "V-mon! Miyako! _Taichi!_" 

"No one can help you now, little one." The Kaiser smiled. "What were you thinking, coming into my domain alone? One would think you had a death wish. Your Digimon has been captured. Your 'friends' don't know that you're here, or don't care. As much as I like a good fight, my suggestion is that you come quietly. I might spare your life." 

Daisuke scowled. "I don't think so, Ken!" 

"_Don't call me that!_" 

"I'll say whatever I like, _Ken!_" The bigger boy flung the Kaiser away from him once again, this time scrambling to his feet and tackling the indigo-haired dictator. They tussled briefly on the dirt before the ledge they had landed on gave way completely, and both children fell screaming once again. 

Daisuke clutched at the struggling Kaiser, squeezing his eyes shut. _So this is how it ends. Hikari...Takeru...Taichi...it's all over..._

He looked, for a split second, and wished he hadn't. 

The ground rushed up to meet him. 

@~*~@~*~@~*~@~*~@~*~@~*~@~*~@ 

Daisuke groaned loudly, watching the purplish blue sky of the digital world beginning to focus on his eyes. "M'...alive..." He noted the cliff from which he had fallen--at least 30 feet above--and thanked God. 

The cinnimon-eyed child gingerly sat up and checked himself for broken bones, immediately discovering the reason for his soft landing. He lay partially on top of the Digital Kaiser, who was out cold. "Shimatta." The Kaiser might have been a--figuratively speaking--royal pain in the backside, but Daisuke didn't want to see him _dead_. 

"I can see the headlines," Daisuke said out loud. "'Young Genius Murdered by Goggle Boy.' Ken? Ken, wake up!" 

Daisuke checked the tyrant's neck, sighing in relief when his fingers found a weak pulse. "Ken!" He shook the other boy gently. "Wake up!" 

Still the young emperor failed to stir. "He must have gotten hit pretty hard. And where the hell are we?" 

_Far away, that's for sure._ He had been ambushed by the Kaiser when he and V-mon had come to the Digital World that afternoon. Only recently had the Chosen Children discovered that the Digimon Kaiser was none other than Ichijouji Ken, the famous boy genius of Tamachi. Still upset by the loss of his team's soccer game against Ken's, and mourning the loss of his idolism of Ken, Daisuke had come to confront the Kaiser one-on-one. Fladramon had been captured almost immediately and sent back to the base with Ken's ringed troops, at which point Daisuke had attacked the Kaiser himself and sent both of them flying off his Airdramon and down a steep hill. The Airdramon hadn't reappeared at Ken's calling, however, and the tussling boys had ended up falling off the ledge completely. 

_There's no way I'm gonna be able to climb back up there,_ Daisuke thought in dismay. _And what if this idiot wakes up?_

He checked his D-3. _They'll come to look for me eventually...I've just gotta wait it out. I'll start walking._ Unfortunately, the unconscious boy at his feet still presented a huge problem. "I can't leave him here. Ken? Keeee~n! Shit." Daisuke at this point noticed the blood staining Ken's indigo hair and dropped to his knees to inspect it. There was a sizeable cut on the Kaiser's forehead that was pouring out blood. "_Damn!_" He stripped off his jacket and tore off a bit of the shirt underneath, hoping vainly that the Digital World would replace it with a fresh one when next he came. He wound the strip of cloth around the Kaiser's head and fastened it with his goggles, tightening them to apply pressure to the wound. "Pretty good, if I do say so myself." 

He removed the Kaiser's torn cape and tucked it under his arm, hoisting the unconscious dictator onto his shoulder in a fireman's carry. "Let's find some shelter, buddy...we might be waiting a while." 

@~*~@~*~@~*~@~*~@~*~@~*~@~*~@ 

It was but a few minutes before Daisuke ran across a shallow cave, a numerous feature in the mountainus region of the Digital World. "Good thing, too; you're getting kind of heavy. I wish V-mon were here." _V-mon._ He wondered if his Digimon would be all right. Then again, without the Kaiser, the base's occupants might leave him alone. Maybe. 

He deposited the fallen emperor on the cave floor after checking it for Numemon and god-knew-what-else. Ken hadn't come to, hadn't spoken, had barely been _breathing _ since Daisuke awoke. _What if he's in a coma? I don't have any medical supplies! Where's Jyou when you need him!?_ Feeling suddenly sorry for the other boy, Daisuke placed his jacket over the Kaiser's body, hoping it would offer him more warmth than the tight jumpsuit did. 

"I hope the others come for me." Daisuke pondered a moment before realizing he had forgotten something critical. "Of course! My D-Terminal!" 

The tiny computer looked a little beaten from the fall, and when Daisuke opened it the screen was black. It had been damaged beyond Daisuke's ability to repair. _I guess I can't count on anything happening until somebody _notices_ that I'm gone._

It was getting dark outside, the Child of Courage noted. _Fire. I need a fire._ He ran outside and gathered some twigs and a few peices of dry wood, heaping them a few feet away from the sleeping tyrant. "Now how do I _light_ the damn thing?" Wishing once again for V-mon--in this case Fladramon--'s assistance, he began to rub two sticks together, giving up after a few moments of failure. 

_Can't get that cold out here, can it?_

@~*~@~*~@~*~@~*~@~*~@~*~@~*~@ 

It was _freezing_. 

Seven hours later and feeling quite like a human Popsicle, Daisuke jolted awake to the sound of soft moaning. Ken had begun to stir beside him. 

_Damn. Maybe I should have tied him up. What if he..._ The boy shook his head. The Kaiser was in no shape to attack him, much less kill. "Ken? Ken, can you hear me?" 

The indigo eyes struggled open and slowly focused on Daisuke. "Wha...?" 

Daisuke stared at the Kaiser uncertainly. He had only glimpsed those violet eyes a few times, and never when they were so filled with pain and confusion. "Ken...?" 

"I...I hear you..." 

"Uh...how are you feeling?" 

The Kaiser stared at him blankly. "My head hurts...but..." 

"Oh. Well, that's to be expected. I guess." 

Daisuke laughed uncertainly, and Ken bit his lip and squinted at the younger boy.

"Who...who are you?" 

~to be continued...

author's note: I'm trying to decide whether this will be Kensuke, or will just be friendship. please offer your thoughts in a review. thanks! 


	2. you don't see the hands upheld to catch ...

oh my bejeezus, i haven't that that many reviews on one story in a while...my writing must be getting worse. ^^;; thanks for the support guys. read on! 

**Memory Lapse**   
_part 2~_

This was not what the Child of COurage had been expecting. 

"And what the hell is _that_ supposed to mean?" Daisuke exploded, staring incredolously at Ken. His patience had been tried _over_ and _over_ and _over_ again that day...and now this!? "Tell me you're joking, Ichijouji." 

"Ichi...?" 

Daisuke blinked and allowed his breathing to return to normal. "You're not joking, are you? You honestly can't remember?" 

Ken slowly sat up, looking intently at the palms and backs of his hands. The only light in the black cave was the screen of Daisuke's D-3, which cast an eerie glow on the face of both boys. "I don't understand...I can't remember _anything!_ Who _are_ you?!" 

"Whoa, Ken, don't freak out there...I'll help you. If there's anything I can do, that is." It was Daisuke's turn to worry now. "What have you forgotten?" 

"Well, if I _knew_, I wouldn't have forgotten it!" Ken seethed. 

It seemed he hadn't fogotten how to insult people. "Well, you certainly have the same personality." 

Ken stopped short. "...I'm sorry, that was uncalled for. Without you I dare say I'd be even more confused. What was your name again?" 

Taken aback at Ken's sudden shift in attitude, the younger boy stammered, "Mo--Motomiya Daisuke." 

"Hajimemashite." Ken reached out and shook Daisuke's hand, Western-style. "Now, uh--Motomiya-san, is it?--who am I?" 

"-kun is fine," Daisuke assured him. "Or even just Daisuke. And you're Ichijouji Ken. You're from Tamachi, Japan; eleven years old, you play soccer and know judo, you're really smart...euh...I don't really know a lot about you, actually, now that I think about it." 

"Did we know each other well?" 

"Well, kind of." Daisuke hesitated to mention the whole Digital World bit--if the Digimon Kaiser was out of commission for a while, why push him back into it? "We played soccer together. I'm from Odaiba." 

"Odaiba. Tamachi. Soccer." Ken repeated Daisuke's words, seemingly absorbing them. "All right, another question; what happened to me?" 

"You...fell," Daisuke said slowly, uncertain how to phrase what he needed to say. "You and I were....fighting...and we both fell from one of the mountain ledges. You hit your head pretty hard." 

"Fighting?" Daisuke prayed that Ken wouldn't ask too much. He was fortunate that the ex-Kaiser was taking this all so well; then again, he had always seemed like a patient and composed person. "A physical fight? What were we arguing about?" 

"It's not really important, Ken. Just a minor disagreement." 

"But you're helping me now, so we must have made up." 

"You could say that." Daisuke grinned. "We may have had our differences in the past, but I wouldn't leave you behind when you were hurt. And you _are_ hurt, so you should lie back down." 

"Right." Ken lay back again, pillowing his head on Daisuke's jacket. "Thanks a lot for taking care of me...Daisuke." 

"No problem...Ken." 

@~*~@~*~@~*~@~*~@~*~@~*~@~*~@ 

For the next several hours Daisuke moved between sleeping and thinking. The situation with Ken was particularly difficult; for one thing he shouldn't be helping his enemy, and then, what exactly was happening with Ken? He had learned a bit about amnesia in school, but he wouldn't be able to diagnose it. Then again, all the evidence was right there in front of him. _He couldn't even remember his own name, Daisuke. What other proof do you need?_

The mahogany-haired boy cast another furtive glance at his charge, who lay with the glowing D-3 beside his head. What if Ken _never_ recovered his memory, Daisuke wondered? What if the Digimon Kaiser was gone forever? _I'd feel...sorry for him. Imagine having lost everything dear to you. Even though he's an enemy, I still feel...guilty, somehow. This isn't the way he should have lost the battle between us; over a stupid accident. _

But then, wouldn't it be even more wrong to let him continue as he was? 

~to be continued... 

author's note: a short chapter. I tried to really work some feeling into this one. ^_^ more soon. enjoy! 


	3. so we make it up as we go along

as amusing as ken lying about the whole thing would be, i doubt the story'll go that way. maybe i'll do an alternate ending or something. 

**Memory Lapse**   
_part 3~_

Daisuke awoke bright and early the next morning, finally feeling refreshed. Ken lay beside him, eyes open. "Good morning, Daisuke-kun." 

"'Morning. How are you feeling?" 

"Much better. And you?" 

"Great." Daisuke stretched like a cat and yawned contentedly. "I feel much better." 

"I hope so--it's got to be almost noon already. You've been asleep the whole morning." 

"Aa?" Daisuke looked sheepish. "Well, as long as you didn't get too bored. Oh--I should change that dressing, shouldn't I?" 

Ken gingerly touched the strip of cloth wrapped around his head. "I was wondering about that..." 

Daisuke's face was grave. "You hit your head pretty hard. I guess the bleeding's stopped by now, though." He gently removed the goggles from Ken's inky-blue hair and unwound the soaked cloth. Under the fabric the wound had indeed closed--still leaving Ken's forehead a bloody mess. "Just a second, I'll clean that up." He tore a peice from the Kaiser's discarded cape and ran outside, leaving Ken alone in the dank cave. 

The young genius frowned, inspecting the bundle of fabric that Dai had just unrolled. It was dark purple with yellow trim, and had what looked like a single cracked shoulder pad hanging from it. _It looks familiar, but...wrong, somehow._ Ken couldn't remember the word to describe the object he held. His head hurt--again. 

Sighing, Ken laid down the fabric again as Daisuke returned. "There's a lake nearby, but I don't know if I want to drink out of it. Anyway, I'vr got some water on the cloth. Here, tilt your head." Ken did so, allowing Daisuke to gently clean the dried blood from his forehead. He occasionally winced, but otherwise held quite still. 

Daisuke sat back to take another look. "It's not so bad--it's mostly hidden by your bangs. I'd better put another dressing on it just in case, though." He tore away a longer strip from the garment and wound it around Ken's head, securing it once again with the goggles. Ken shot him a questioning look. "My goggles--you can borrow them, to keep the bandage on tight. There's not enough left out of the cape to tie it around your head. 

Ken nodded, storing both words in his memory. _Cape. Goggles._ Familiar words, but still out of his reach. "Thanks, Daisuke." 

"No problem." Daisuke grinned at his handiwork. "It looks like you're gonna be okay. And I managed to do it without Jyou!" 

"Jyou?" The name didn't ring a bell with Ken, and he looked at Daisuke curiously. 

"A friend of mine. Well, friend of a friend. He's studying to be a doctor." at Ken's quizzical look, he added, "healing people, fixing them up. Like what I'm doing with you." 

Ken added the word to his internal dictionary with a nod. "And this Jyou taught you to be a doctor?" 

"No, no." Daisuke laughed. "_Jyou's_ learning to be a doctor. I was just saying that even though I don't know anything about medicine or healing people, I still fixed you up okay." 

Ken smiled. 

"Anyway--I guess I should tell you more about everything, so you won't be so confused. Right now--" he gestured around him, "--we're not on Earth. That's the place where we live, in case you've forgotten. We're in a place called the Digital World, it's kind of an alternate dimension inside computers, really." Daisuke frowned, unable to really explain the way he wanted to. "Normally we're from Earth, in a country--a big peice of land--called Japan. I come from a section of Japan called Odaiba, and you're from Tamachi. Anyway, we come to the Digital World for a few reasons. We're supposed to protect it from harm with the help of the creatures that live here, Digimon." He took a deep breath. "We call ourselves the Chosen Children, and we've been defending the Digital World from a guy called the Digimon Kaiser." 

Ken absorbed all the information; remembering the meanings of some of the words, discerning others from their context. To Daisuke's relief he did not ask for further infomation on the Kaiser. "Are we the only Chosen Children?" 

"Actually, Ken, you're not a Chosen Child." Ken looked disappointed. "There are quite a few Chosen, though. Let's see. There's Taichi, the guy who gave me the goggles. And Yamato, his best friend, who plays in a band. Making music, you know?" Ken nodded, remembering music. "Koushirou, who's a computer geek--computers are like these, only bigger." He showed Ken his inoperative D-Terminal. He's a geek because he spends all his time with him computer. I think you were a computer geek too, but you played soccer as well. Oh! Soccer. My favorite sport--you kick around a ball, that's a little round thing, um, and you play against other people, and kick it away from them and into a goal, which is a space...uh...I'm not making sense. I'll show you later. Andway, I play soccer, and so do you, and Taichi. Let's see, other Chosen...there's Mimi, who lives in America. That's another country. Sora, who works in a flower shop---you remember what flowers are? Takeru, Yamato's little brother, and Hikari, Taichi's little sister. People who live together." Daisuke's definitions were terribly confusing, but Ken was understanding most of it. "Jyou I already told you about. Miyako is a computer geek too, and Iori practices kendo. He hits people with sticks. I'd tell you about their Digimon, but you'd never remember all their names." Daisuke grinned. 

"What about my Digimon?" Ken asked worriedly. 

"Yours? Well, you've got a lot of Digimon...allies...but I don't know if you have a partner. If you do I've never met him." (A/N: This takes place directly after they find out Ken is the Kaiser. It's unlikely that Daisuke knows that Wormmon is actually Ken's partner.) 

Ken looked saddened. "What about yours, then?" 

"Oh!" Daisuke perked up, but immediately bit his lip. "Well, his name is V-mon and we've only been partners for a little while, but we're really close. He's been...captured...by the Digimon Kaiser and is at the Kaiser's base." 

"Kaiser?" The word struck a rough chrod in Ken, but he was unable to recall any memory. 

"A dictator who's been threatening the Digital World." Daisuke wouldn't meet Ken's eyes. "The Chosen have been fighting him for a while." 

Although the subject of the Kaiser intrigued him, V-mon was more of a curiosity. "Aren't you going to go after your Digimon? He's your partner, right?" Ken couldn't remember the exact definition of the word 'partner,' but other words came to him when he tried. _Friend. Together. Join._ These he remembered, though their purposes were hazy. 

"Of course!" Daisuke looked at Ken strangly. 

"Well...how far away is he? Can we walk?" 

Daisuke's jaw dropped. Ken was offering to help free V-mon? It was almost too good to be true! _Though..._ Daisuke thought nervously, _what if someone in the base recognizes him? They're sure to make a fuss that the Kaiser is back, and say something to Ken!_ Loyalty to V-mon won out, however, and Daisuke thanked Ken gratefully. "If you're up to it, that I'm sure we'd get there in no time." 

"I'm fine." Ken offered Daisuke a shy smile--an expression that the cinnamon-eyed boy still wasn't used to seeing--and got to his feet. "I'd like to meet your Digimon, and of course I want to help you. We're friends, right?" 

"Yeah." Daisuke smiled genuinely in return. "We're friends." 

@~*~@~*~@~*~@~*~@~*~@~*~@~*~@ 

(A/N: As tempted as I am to leave it right there--what a sappy end to the chapter!--I'll continue. Athena's right, when I get excited with a fic I usually try and do a short chapter every day, for lack of time--and because the closing sentence in that last paragraph there just screams 'next chapter!' However, I've got a few extra minutes tonight, so why not keep going? I'm sure I'll find something good to end this next part with. If not, just come back up here and read the 'we're friends' line again. Ja ne! ~Shi) 

Daisuke and Ken began the long trek across the digital landscape, Daisuke chattering nonstop the whole way. He had told Ken everything he knew about _everything_--schools, sports, Japan, the Digital World, the Chosen, and what little knowledge he could offer about computers and books. He told Ken about his parents; who he had learned about through the media, and about Tamachi; which Daisuke had visited a few times. Eventually Ken was feeling much better and much more equipped to face the world. 

"If you never get your memory back," Daisuke joked, "I'll teach you everything I know, and then maybe you can come to my school. I mean, I guess some of your genius stuff is inborn, but since we're friends you could come to Odaiba." Daisuke gaily filled him in about how much Ken would love being in the company of Hikari and Miyako and Iori and Takeru. "You'd love Miyako-chan, she likes a lot of the same stuff you used to. And she'd be thrilled, because she really likes you." Ken smiled in reply. "That would be nice. Though I _would_ like to get my memory back." 

"Point. Just a suggestion, though, you know!" Daisuke laughed. His face hardened a moment later and he pointed to a large black shape moving in the sky. "There it is--the Kaiser's base." 

Daisuke marveled at the technology of Ken's modified D-3 as he handed it back to the wild-haired boy. He had been able to use the digivice to track the base; a function his own D-3 could never perform. Ken, for the most part, was confused by the little device. 

The base was _huge._ Both boys stood still for a moment just to look. "Wow..." Ken breathed. "Look at that...it's like a big, floating..." Unable to recall the word for _stone_, he used a cruder-sounding word. "...rock." 

"That's what I was thinking," agreed Daisuke, who had immediately thought of the word _rock_ to describe the monstrosity. "Shall we go inside?" 

The two proceeded to one of the lower doors of the collossal structure, stopping at the door. There was a keypad on the side of it. Daisuke put in some random combinations of numbers and looked frustrated hwne all of them failed to yield. 

Ken looked at the keypad, touching the door with his fingertips. "This is...familiar, somehow." 

"Do you think you know the code?" Daisuke asked. 

"I don't know." Ken closed his eyes and tried to remember, but the harder he thought the further away it seemed to slip. He let his fingers stray over the keypad, letting them unconsciously tap out a familiar rhythm. 

"You got it!" Daisuke crowed as the door slid open. "Nice going, Ken! Now...how will we get past the Kaiser's troops? He has lots of Digimon working with him." 

Ken looked down the dark passageway. "I'm not entirely sure. Are there other humans here?" 

Daisuke frowned. "I don't know--I doubt it. But I guess just walking in might work, because how would we get in if we didn't belong there? I bet no one will say anything. We have no Digimon, so they won't be looking for Dark Rings." 

"Right." Daisuke had explained the Rings just a few minutes before. "Okay, where do you think your partner will be?" 

"I'm not sure." The boys had come to a staircase and begun to climb. "Maybe there's a computer or something we can look at. But I don't know anything about computers." 

"I used to, I think." Ken said slowly. "Maybe it'll come back to me, like the code did." 

"It's worth a try," Daisuke agreed. "How about I look on the bottom level, since that's where the bad guys usually put the dungeons, and you find a computer?" 

Ken felt uneasy about splitting up, but didn't say so. "All right. V-mon is blue and looks like a dragon, you said? He can't be too hard to find. We'll meet back here soon." 

"Got it. Good luck, Ken." 

"Good luck." 

@~*~@~*~@~*~@~*~@~*~@~*~@~*~@ 

Ken ascended the staircase as quietly as he could, calming his breathing after jumping at many shadows. _I'll try the top floor and work my way down._

Once he had reached the apex of the base he slipped though the nearest door and into a dark hallway. He hadn't encountered any of the elusive Digimon yet, but he expected he'd know one when he saw it. 

The inky-haired child wandered down the hall, his heavy boots making far too much noise on the stone floor for his liking. _It's so dark in here. It gives me the creeps._

Pausing for a moment, Ken heard the sound of faint sobbing from nearby. _Someone's...crying? What if that's V-mon?_ Ken eased up and put his ear against one of the big metal doors. The sobs were louder, now, despairing. _But what if it's the Digimon Kaiser? You don't even know what he looks like, Ken. You could get yourself killed._

Something about the voice producing the wailing sounds moved something within him, though, and he knew he had to confront whoever-it-was. Ken gently slid the door open and stepped inside. 

The room was large and vastly furnished, with a huge black silken-sheeted bed and several armchairs. A table with a glowing machine--a computer?--was in the corner, and there were many books on shelves. There were other objects that Ken couldn't identify by name. 

On the bed, a small green creature was crying its beautiful blue eyes out. It looked up, sniffling slightly and regarded Ken, a spark of joy lighting the chubby face. _"Ken-chan!!_" 

~to be continued... 

yeah, as tempted as i am, i thought that would be a good place to end it. if i let the conversation between ken and wormmon start i'll never be able to stop. hey, it was a pretty long chapter anyway. stay tuned! 


	4. and it's always too late when you've got...

onward. i don't think i've been this enthusiastic about a story since _death becomes him._

**Memory Lapse**   
_part 4~_

The caterpillar squealed, overjoyed. _"Ken-chan!_ Where have you been!? I've been so worried! I thought I'd never see you again!" 

Ken stared at the little creature in shock. _So this is a Digimon. But Daisuke said that V-mon was blue...who is this little guy? How does he know me?_

The insect seemed to take Ken's silence as a bad sign. "I'm sorry, I got too excited. I'm sure that you were out on a mission or something, and I shouldn't have been worried." He cocked his green head to the side. "What happened to your clothes? And why are you wearing those goggles?" 

_He seems friendly enough..._ "I was in a small--" what was the word? "--accident. The goggles are keeping the bandage on tight." Ken hesitated slightly, wondering whether or not to reveal himself to the little creature. "Actually, I'm suffering from amnesia as well. May I ask who you are?" 

The insect stared at him. "Am-what?" 

"Amnesia. I've lost my memory temporarily." 

"Oh." To Ken's surprise, the Digimon seemed to be considering whether that was a good or bad thing. "Well, I'm Wormmon." Ken waited for an explanation of exactly _who_ Wormmon was, but none came. Instead the Digimon gasped and flung himself off the bed. "Wait, a bandage? You're hurt?" 

"Yeah." Ken gingerly touched the strip of cloth. 

The insect scurried towards him, pods clicking on the stone floor. "Oh Ken-chan! Does it hurt? Will you be okay?" Touched by the Digimon's show of affection, Ken smiled and nodded. Wormmon stopped suddenly. "Ken-chan...are you all right? I haven't seen you smile in so long..." he cringed. "I spoke out of turn again. I'm sorry...Please don't hit me." 

"Hit you?" Ken looked at the Digimon confusedly. "Why would I? You're just concerned for me, aren't you?" 

The extent of Ken's injuries had finally sunk in for the little virus-type. "You've forgotten...everything?" 

"So it seems." 

"So..." the Digimon realized aloud, "you're like the old Ken-chan, just with no memories, right?" The green monster's mandibles clicked in excitement. Ken nodded. "Oh, Ken-chan! I'm so glad!" He flung himself into the surprised boy's arms and nuzzled against the spandex-clad chest. 

Ken was still terribly, terribly confused. _But this feels....right, somehow. Familiar._ He held Wormmon gently, tenderly as the little insect's body was wracked with sobs of joy. 

@~*~@~*~@~*~@~*~@~*~@~*~@~*~@ 

To Daisuke's delight, he had come upon V-mon's cell almost immediately. "V-mon! Hey, buddy, wake up!" 

The blue dragon sprung to life. "Daisuke! I knew you'd come! I couldn't bust outta here without you! Should I go to Fladramon?" 

"No need, little guy." Daisuke tapped in the same password he had seen Ken use to open the doors to the base. "I've got someone helping me out." 

"Hikari?" V-mon asked hopefully. 

"Iie. Ken." 

V-mon cocked his head to one side. "Wait a minute. Ken, as in the Digimon Kaiser Ken?" 

"One and the same. Listen, V-mon, there's a story here. Ken hit his head while we were fighting and now he's lost his memory. He doesn't remember who he is, or being the Kaiser." V-mon nodded slowly. "He's a nice guy, really he is! But the others can't know I'm helping him--it was my fault he nearly got killed, so I _have_ to help him. And the weirdest thing is, we're becomeing really good friends. I've never had a friend like that, except for you, V-mon. 

"Anyway, I have to keep him away from the others. If his memory comes back it's a lost cause, and he'll go Kaiser again, right? But if he never gets his memory back...we're down one enemy, and I keep a good friend." 

"It makes sense," V-mon agreed. "Just be careful, Daisuke. Don't get hurt." 

"I won't," Dai promised. "Don't mention anything about the Kaiser to Ken, okay? He's helping us, and I feel bad keeping his past from him, but I don't want to see him hurt--or worse, right back where he started." 

"Agreed." 

@~*~@~*~@~*~@~*~@~*~@~*~@~*~@ 

"Let me get this straight. _You're_ my Digimon partner? I didn't realize I had one." 

Wormmon nodded happily. "Uh-huh. We've been together since you were only little, and we used to fight with another boy named Ryo. How did you know about Digimon if you lost your memory, Ken-chan?" 

"I had help," Ken admitted. "There's another boy here with me, named Daisuke." 

"Oh! One of the Chosen Children? I'm glad you're making friends with them, Ken-chan." Wormmon beamed. "You never got along before." 

"Daisuke said we used to fight a lot," Ken said sheepishly. "I don't see how, I think he's a really great person." 

"I think so too," Wormmon agreed happily. "It's nice to have a friend." 

Ken smiled, hugging the virus-type Digimon to his chest. "Definitely." 

"Ken-chan, I'm your friend too, right?" 

"Of course, Wormmon. Friends for life." 

@~*~@~*~@~*~@~*~@~*~@~*~@~*~@ 

The two boys and their Digimon met in the staircase, eager to escape the oppressive structure. Daisuke looked at the newcomer. "Hello, who's this?" 

"This is Wormmon, my Digimon partner," Ken said proudly. Wormmon beamed. 

_Ken...since when does he have a Digimon partner? What does this mean? _"Well, looks like you've got one after all! Nice to meet you, Wormmon. I'm Motomiya Daisuke, and this is my partner V-mon." 

"Nice to meet you," Wormmon replied. He looked carefully at V-mon. "Aren't you the Chosen Digimon that got captured?" 

"Yeah..." V-mon admitted. 

"We came here to break him out," said Ken helpfully. "To save him from the Digimon Kaiser." 

"But Ken-chan, _you're--"_

Daisuke cut him off. "--putting yourself in danger for my partner's sake! Let's get out of here." 

Ken nodded, cutting the introductions short. "Right. We'll catch up on everything later. Wormmon got us some supplies as well--food, a blanket, tools to fix your little computer, and some matches." 

"Where are we going?" Wormmon asked worriedly. 

Daisuke grinned. "I know a place not too far from here. We can find shelter and maybe fix up my D-Terminal, and talk." _The others will be looking for me soon, so we should go to an area that doesn't have any Digital Gates. The longer Takeru and the others look, the better chance that I can figure out what's going on in Ichijouji Ken's messed-up brain. _

"Sounds good." The four travelers left the desolate Kaiser's base and headed across the sandy desert, intent on leaving the looming rock as far behind as possible. 

_Please, everyone, you barely notice when I'm around anyway...would you realize I'm gone? I just need a little more time, and I know I can fix this so everyone's happy. _

Just a little more... 

~to be continued... 

wah! what plot! could ken be...*gasp*...a CHOSEN CHILD!? 

"i don't think I've been giving davis enough credit...he's the bravest person i know." ~tk 


	5. so you should never let the sun set on t...

yeah, so i was at cadets tonight and got bored, so i started studying for friday's japanese midterm...and i pull out the sheet and it says, 'thursday, february 28th.' panic time. i left early to go home and study, but i promised some people i'd have chapter 5 out...and you guys know what i'm like for procastinating, so...it's a little short, but here it is. enjoy! 

**Memory Lapse**   
_part 5~_

Having made a few stops to eat and rest, the little group bounded through the sandy landscape of the Digital World on Raidramon's back, heading for a place that Daisuke deemed 'safe' from the Digimon Kaiser. 

In reality, of course, they would be perfectly safe from the Kaiser no matter _where_ they went--or was it the other way around? Daisuke smiled to himself. All that remained really would be to assure everyone that Ken was perfectly harmless. 

Wasn't he? 

Although he enjoyed the indigo-haired boy's company immensely, Daisuke was still unsure. What happened if Ken changed back all of a sudden? When he and V-mon coudn't defend themselves, like when they were sleeping? 

Wormmon was another mystery. Looking at the virus-type and his partner was enough to give Daisuke cavities, they were so sappy. Wormmon spent most of the journey in Ken's protective arms, nuzzling his human happily. Ken, for his part, hadn't stopped smiling. They seemed to be getting along marvelously. However, Daisuke was still wary about the sudden appearance of the insectoid Digimon. Taichi had once told him that only Chosen Children had Digimon partners, and Daisuke knew quite well that only Chosen could enter the Digital World. He had assumed that Ken, being a genius, had merely worked on a Digivice and snuck into the Digital World. After all, Ken's D-3 was heavily modified. 

_But where would the Kaiser get a Digivice anyway?_ Daisuke stiffened. _Digivice...partner...wait one minute here. Is Ken _Chosen? 

(A/N: About bloody time, Daisuke!) 

But it didn't add up! Ken was...well, evil! _He couldn't have been part of the second generation of Chosen, we got our D-3s __after_ he started terrorizing the Digital World. And then again, even Koushirou says that there are only eight crests. Light, Hope, Courage, Friendship, Knowledge, Faith, Purity, and Love. Ken didn't seem to fit any of those possibilities. Knowledge, maybe, but that Crest was already taken--twice! 

_Just imagine if he _was_ Chosen, though...I'm sure once we knew he had redeemed himself we'd accept him into the group. Not only would we not have to fight the Kaiser anymore, but we'd have another good fighter on the team. I wonder what Wormmon evolves into?_

Daisuke grinned. No time like the present! "Hey, Wormmon--you can evolve, right?" 

"Yes..." Wormmon replied, lifting his head to look at Daisuke. 

"Into what?" 

"Stingmon." 

"Cool. Well, uh, what armour is that?" 

"Armour?" 

_It's not an armour evolution? Takeru told me about evolving without the Dark Towers around, but V-mon's never done it...but if Ken's Chosen, he should have a crest! Maybe...maybe I was wrong...?_ "Yeah. It's evolving using the power of a Chosen Crest." 

"Oh." Wormmon still looked puzzled. "No, I get power from Ken-chan's D-3. I've been able to do it for as long as I can remember." 

"Okay." Daisuke frowned. "Wormmon, is Ken a Chosen Child? How did you two end up...where you were?" 

Wormmon looked a little nervous, glancing at Ken as though asking for permission. "Ken-chan was Chosen, but that was a long time ago. He doesn't like to talk about it." 

Ken himself spared a glance at his companion. "What? Why?" 

"What do you mean, 'a long time ago'?" Daisuke questioned. 

"Well, a few years ago Ken-chan first came and met me. A Digivice came out of his computer and everything, and we were real good friends. We knew another boy named Ryo who had a V-mon, like yours, Daisuke." Wormmon smiled sadly. "Ken-chan had an accident, though...a bad Digimon we were fighting kind of poisoned him, by putting a seed in the back of his neck. He was _real_ sick. After he went home, the next time he came back everything was different. He talked about a 'black ocean' and his Digivice had turned all dark. Then all the Kaiser things happened. Ken-chan got real mean, and I couldn't do anything to help. He was sad a lot." 

Ken looked at his Digimon in disbelief. "I...don't remember any of that." 

"But that explains it!" crowed Daisuke. "Well, I bet Koushirou could figure it out. Wormmon, do you think it was the seed that caused him to change into the Digimon Kaiser?" 

"Wait a minute, _I'm_ the Digimon Kaiser?" Ken twisted his body to stare at Daisuke. "But I thought you said that the Kaiser was the _enemy!_" 

"Oops." Daisuke grimaced. "Not really an enemy, Ken...just...a person in need of help. I didn't tell you because I didn't want to make you feel bad. I wanted to be friends." 

The gears in Ken's head were certainly turning now. "You _used_ me! You only needed me to help you get your Digimon out!" 

"That's not true, Ken!" Daisuke pleaded. "I really wanted to help you!" 

"I can't believe you took advantage of me like that. I thought we were friends." 

"Don't _be_ like that, Ken! We _are_ friends!" 

"Daisuke..." Ken looked like he were about to cry. "Do you hate me?" 

Dai hugged Ken tightly. "Of course not! I'm sorry I didn't tell you...I was worried of what you might think." 

Ken looked stricken. "But all the things you told me about the Kaiser...the base, torturing Digimon? It was all true?" 

"I'm sorry." Daisuke sighed. "It's true." 

Wormmon anxiously cuddled against his human, his eyes huge and pleading. "Please don't go back to that way, Ken-chan..." 

"I don't want to, my friend," Ken replied softly, holding Wormmon close. "But it's so hard, not remembering anything..." 

"I understand," Daisuke comforted. 

Ken bit his lip and turned again, looking at Daisuke with emotional violet eyes. "I'm sorry..." 

Daisuke leaned forward and wrapped his arms around Ken, hugging the other boy tightly. "It's okay, Ken-kun. You can get through this, I know." 

_But who will you be when it's all over--Ken, or Kaiser?_

Unnoticed to either of the distraught boys, the Black D-3 began to flash urgently: 

Someone had entered the Digital World. 

~to be continued... 

at this point i'd like to thank some people. the elemental, isis blue, amaisha and sup, ken's luver, athena (as usual), emu, daughter_of_gohan, valecia, zapha, adam, ami-chan, dria, davisfan, cat, and ann007 for reviewing. (in particular those of you who have reviewed more than once--you're the ones who are keeping me going!) i must go off and fail my japanese exam now (actually, rethinking, i don't see _how_ i could manage to _fail_ it), and i'll be back tomorrow with chapter 6. thanks everyone! 


	6. i'm only here to watch you as you suffer

sorry guys, there's either something wrong with FFN or with my idiot copy of winxp. many thanks to the people who pointed it out, and here's chapter 6. 

all my other fics are now on hiatus until i finish this one. and in case anyone's wondering, the exam went well. 

**Memory Lapse**   
_part 6~_

The two boys dismounted near a rushing waterfall and a small, enclosed cove. "I found this place when I first met V-mon," Daisuke explained. "After that, Dark Towers popped up everywhere. The other Chosen won't find us here." 

"What? Don't you need to go home?" Ken looked at Daisuke strangely. 

"I will...but I'm not going without you. I thought maybe we could talk it out once we got far away from the base. Do you...want to come back? To the Real World?" 

Ken bit his lip. "I...don't remember what it's like there." 

"You have a family there. Parents who care for you...and one true friend. Me." 

Blushing slightly, Ken looked down at the ground. "Thanks. I guess I'm better off there, around other people. Can I take Wormmon?" 

"Of course! V-mon goes home with me all the time." 

The indigo-haired boy smiled. "All right...I'll go." 

"Great! That was easier than I thought it would be!" Daisuke ran forward and gave Ken another hug. "Let's camp here for the night, and then look for a Digital Gate first thing in the morning." 

_"Big Crack!"_ An accented battle cry rang out all around the cove. The ground began to shake and large rocks fell from above, raining down on the two boys. 

"Get away from him!" another, younger, voice shouted. 

Daisuke gasped and pulled back. "Iori?! What are you doing here?!" 

Wormmon tried to run to his human's side but was held back by V-mon. "Ken-chan!" 

"No! You'll be crushed!" the blue lizard gasped. 

"Dai!" Ken shrieked, as Digmon's earthshaking attack created a chasm in the ground below him. The ex-Kaiser fell out of Daisuke's line of vision and into the pit. 

"Daisuke!" Iori ran to the other boy's side, fists clenched. "Where on earth have you _been?_ You've been in here for three days!" 

"I've been _here,_" Daisuke replied, exasperated. "My God, where did he go?" 

"Who?" 

"Ken, of course!" Daisuke ran to the chasm and peered in, calling his companion's name. Wormmon was in tears. 

"I hope he's dead," Iori said coldly. "I've sent a message to the others, and they're on their way. Are you all right? Have you been hurt?" 

"Not till now," the cinnamon-eyed boy growled, turning to his partner. "Could you get down there, V-mon?" 

"I can try." 

"Digimental...up!" 

"V-mon...armour shinka! Courage's Fire*, Fladramon!" The newly-armoured Digimon vaulted down into the pit, disappearing. 

Daisuke turned his attention back to Iori. "Yes, I'm all right, no, I'm not hurt. What were you thinking, Iori, using Big Crack in this little space? You could have killed us all!" 

"Sorry," the child said grudgingly, not looking sorry at all. "I thought the Kaiser was attacking you." 

"We were _talking_, all right? That's not excuse to try and _kill_ him." 

"Look, I _said_ I was _sorry!_" 

Fladramon reappeared with a limp Ken in his arms. The boy was unconscious. Wormmon whimpered loudly and ran to his partner's side, crying his name." 

Daisuke followed suit. "Fladramon, is he hurt?" 

"His head is bleeding." Fladramon held out Daisuke's broken goggles to him. One lens had been shattered completely, the other cracked. 

Iori turned away. "You're helping him because he's Ichijouji Ken, right? Well, guess what, Dai! In this world, he's the Digimon Kaiser. He's _evil_. And all you're doing is being a traitor to our cause." 

"Shut up, Iori," Daisuke groused. "I'm sure you don't want even the Kaizer's blood on your hands." Ken's eyelids fluttered and he stared blankly at the sky. "Hey, are you all right?" 

"I'm...fine..." Ken answered, staggering to his feet. "Which is _much_ more than I can say for this little brat here..." 

"Ken-chan...?" Wormmon squeaked. "Please...don't..." 

Ken glared angrily at the back of the littlest Chosen. "You would have been well-advised to listen to your friend, Motomiya. You both would have had a better chance of _living_, then." 

Daisuke gasped, backing away from the battered boy. "Oh no." 

"Oh, yes. Nice try, little boy, but you've _failed._ My memory has returned. You can't control me, and neither can my parents or your little friends. I appreciate your hospitality--I'll do you a favour, and spare you...as long as you don't protest your friends' fate." 

"I don't see how even you could take on five armoured Digimon, Ken." Takeru, Miyako and Hikari had made their entrance, with Nefertimon, Pegasmon and Holsmon close behind. "Where are all your flunkies today?" 

The Kaiser fumed silently. "I'll make do with what I've got, Chosen. Wormmon?" 

"Y-Yes, Ken-chan?" 

"Evolve. Now." 

"_What_? Me?" 

"Do it." 

The virus-type nodded. "Wormmon, shinka!...Stingmon!" 

Stingmon was much more impressive than Daisuke had imagined. His exoskeleton shield looked impenetrable, and his glowing red eyes deadly. "Oh my God..." 

"What on earth is that!?" Miyako cried. 

Hikari looked troubled. "I didn't realize that Wormmon could evolve." 

"Stingmon. Attack them." 

"Yes, Ken-chan." The giant insect headed straight for Digmon, knocking into the Digimon of Knowledge before he had a chance to counter-attack. He flew into one of the rock walls and immediately reverted to his Armadimon form. 

"Stingmon, _wait!_" Daisuke yelled, running towards the green Digimon. "Please, don't do this!" 

"I have to," he replied sadly. "I appreciate everything you've done, Daisuke-san, but he's my partner. I can't say no." However, the Adult hesitated for a moment before the three remaining Chosen, who hadn't made a move to attack. 

Daisuke ran to Ken's side. "Please, Ken, I know you can't have forgotten! We're friends, remember?" 

"I haven't forgotten," the Kaiser said coldly. "But we're enemies. It's best to forget what happened." 

"Ken..." 

"I'm the _Kaiser_," the other boy spat. "Now step away, before I give the order to kill you too." 

"It doesn't have to _be_ this way!" Daisuke pleaded. "What about everything we talked about? How horrified you were when you realized who you had been? Was that all for nothing?" 

"It was," Ken replied. "Rethink your strategy, Motomiya...it'll be your downfall. I've had my revenge against the Knowledge brat. The rest of you can go...for now. Wormmon!" 

"Yes?" 

"Let's go back to the base. I'm injured, and not thinking straight." He allowed the insect to scoop him up into its huge arms. "Enjoy the Digital World while you still can, Daisuke. Good-bye." 

With that, Ichijouji Ken was gone. 

  


~to be continued... 

*This is probably totally incorrect, I guessed at it. ^^;; 

another one of those 'this-looks-like-a-good-place-to-end-it' chapters. painfully short, but if i'd kept on then i'd never stop. i hope i'll get a chapter out tomorrow; probably around midnight eastern time. thanks for reading, everyone. 


	7. give me a little credit, have in me a li...

you will note that ken had wormmon evolve instead of immediately making a break for it. never fear, nothing is in vain in this story. 

**Memory Lapse**   
_part 7~_

"Damn. _Damn!_" Daisuke swore, angrily returning Fladramon's power to his Digivice. "I've got to go after him. I can't let this go to waste." 

_Enjoy the Digital World....Daisuke._

_He called me Daisuke._ The cinnamon-eyed boy's lips hardened into a thin line. "I"ve got to try. V-mon! Dejimentaru...up!"* 

"V-mon--_Armour Shinka!"_

"Daisuke!" Miyako shouted. 

"I'm going after him," Dai replied simply. "Don't wait up." 

_"Raidramon!" _

"Let's go!" The goggle boy mounted his armoured Digimon and dashed out of the canyon, leaving a confused group of Chosen Children behind. 

@~*~@~*~@~*~@~*~@~*~@~*~@~*~@ 

Ken stormed into the base, his face clouded. "Get this thing moving, Wormmon. Get us out of here." 

"Yes, Ken-chan." The insect scurried off and Ken strode to his control room and sat down in the straight-backed chair. "I'll finish off those Chosen once and for all, this time." 

_Even Daisuke?_ a little voice in his head mocked. 

"Even Daisuke," the Kaiser growled out loud. "That stupid kid thought that he could convince me to go back! Ha. Friends. I don't need any whining, babyish..." he was unable to think of an appropriate adjective to describe Daisuke--"...brat. He makes me so mad. Arg..." 

Ken continued to talk to himself. "Imagine, thinking that the Digital Kaiser would be friends with a, a, a..._weakling_ like him! I don't need anyone else. I don't need any friends. No allies. Just _me!_" His voice rang out shakily in the enclosed room, cracking slightly on the last syallable. "Just me..." 

The Kaiser stared, downcast, at the polished stone floor. _Even if he saved your life?_

"I don't feel any loyalty to you." 

_Even if he did what he did because he liked you __you_ were, not who you pretended to be? 

"Shut _up!_" Ken's straining voice broke into dry sobs. He wasn't even sure who he was talking to anymore--Daisuke, or himself. 

@~*~@~*~@~*~@~*~@~*~@~*~@~*~@ 

Daisuke checked his D-3 every few moments until the point when the signal disappeared. He already knew that the Black D-3's signal could be cloaked; but it had been so close to the Kaiser's base before it winked out that there was no doubt where Ken had gone. Raidramon's fast footing had allowed them to close most of the distance between them and Ken as well. 

The base continued to rest where it had been when Daisuke last visited, although the footprints left behind in the sand had long ago vanished. Daisuke hopped off his devolving Digimon's back and ran to the bottom-level entrance that he and Ken had used. Congratulating himself on a job well done--even if it might get his killed eventually--the Chosen of Courage and Friendship programmed in Ken's code and stepped inside the base, determined to prove that the power of his Crest could sway even the most hard-hearted of Kaisers. 

@~*~@~*~@~*~@~*~@~*~@~*~@~*~@ 

Wormmon's heart stopped in his chest as he passed Ken's door and heard angry sobs coming from behind it. It hadn't been that long ago before their positions had been reversed--Wormmon crying on Ken's empty bed, and Ken stopping to listen outside the cool metal door. 

Deciding to brave the Kaiser's wrath rather than let his Ken go on bawling, Wormmon slid the door aside and slowly entered. "Ken-chan?" 

The boy genius lifted his head from his arms look regard his partner pitifully. "Am I really a monster, like they say?" 

Wormmon wavered, taken aback by the question. "Of course not. You're just...confused...sometimes. And confusing." 

"I'm sorry," Ken whispered hoarsely. "I screwed it all up, didn't I?" 

"The Digital World?" 

"Everything," came the broken reply. "Me, you, Daisuke...all of us." 

  
  
  
  
  
~to be concluded...   
  
people are going to kill me for the length of this chapter. well then, why don't you go and review chapter 6, and I'll see how fast I can get part 8 out? 


	8. so you're standing on a ledge...

i got better feedback on chapter 7 than any other chapter--guess you guys really _do_ like this story. Thanks for the quote, Ann. 

**Memory Lapse**   
_part 8~_ _conclusion-"if i am..."_

"This isn't right," Ken whispered hoarsely. "This isn't _me._ What have I been doing, Wormmon?" 

Wormmon frowned. "Ken-chan..." 

"Is it all true? What Daisuke told me about the Digital World? Tell me it's not all real, Wormmon," he begged. "Tell me it's all a game. _Please!_" 

"It's all real, Ken-chan. I'm real." 

"Gods, what have I done...? I should have listened to Daisuke. I shouldn't have acted so hastily." Hot tears began to well up in Ken's eyes, tears that he refused to shed. "When my memories came back...I didn't want it to be true. Even though I knew in my heart that it was. I let my pride interfere. I couldn't forget what you and Daisuke had done. And now I've gone and screwed up the best thing that ever happened to me. Why did I turn him away?" His voice became a soft whisper and he drew his partner into his arms and held him close. "I'm sorry, Wormmon. I'm sorry, I sorry, I'm so sorry..." 

"It's all right." The virus-type nuzzled his human's cheek comfortingly, and Ken smiled. "I forgive you." 

"I'll change," he promised, hugging the small insect close. "Starting with you. I may be too far gone to ever face Daisuke again, but the least I can do is set what I've done in the past right again. You'll see. You can be Stingmon and help me anytime. I'll shut it all down and destroy it--the Towers, the base, my D-3--and go back to the Real World, and the Chosen will never have to know what happened to the Digimon Kaiser. 

"But Ken, what about Daisuke?" 

"I have to do this alone," Ken said firmly. "You saw Daisuke's face when I threatened to kill him at the canyon. Any friendship we might have had has been lost." 

"And what about me?" 

Ken hesitated. "I don't have any right to be in your world anymore, Wormmon. The deaths I've caused, the lives I've destroyed...no, I can't come back here. If you'll come to the Real World with me, I will keep my D-3 so that you can return whenever you wish. That's all I dare ask of you, my friend." 

"You'll ask of me whatever you like," Wormmon replied firmly, "and I will be happy to comply. I'm your _partner,_ Ken-chan...your companion, your ally, and your friend for life." 

"Thank you, Wormmon." Ken hugged his Digimon tightly, and they lay there in silence, waiting for their respective dreams and nightmares to end. 

The reverie was eventually broken by Daisuke, who clattered noisily into the room. "Ken!" 

Ken sat straight up. "Motomiya," he said coolly, "what do you want? Surely you cannot be protesting the fact that I let you live another day." 

The cinnamon eyes were as hard as diamonds. "Oh, so it's 'Motomiya' again, is it?" 

"When have I called you anything but?" 

"You called me Daisuke in the canyon, and don't deny it. You haven't forgotten _anything_ that's happened over the past three days." 

Ken sniffed regally. "I never claimed to have forgotten the past three days. That's in the past, Motomiya. I have no interest in befriending any of the Chosen." 

"You're lying." 

"What makes you say so?" 

"Your eyes." Daisuke studied the violet orbs intently. "You've got a different look about you than you did an hour ago." 

"You're imagining things. Now get out before I call my guards." 

"If you were gonna call them, you would have done it already." 

"Daisuke..." Ken's determination wavered. The mahogany-haired Chosen was so _forceful._ And...he seemed to know Ken better than he knew himself. 

"There it is! _Daisuke!_" the boy said triumphantly. "What's happened to you, Ken? Why did you go back?" 

"All the things you said...about the Digital World." 

"What, about it all being real? Hell, Ken, if I were deluded--or should I say 'smarter'?--I wouldn't beleive in an alternate dimension existing inside my computer either. What do you expect? The Digital World is an...outlet. A place for you to _escape_ reality." 

"Dai..." Never before had Ken heard his feelings so accurately pegged. 

"Please, Ken, just understand. That's all I'm asking you to do." 

"I _do_ understand. But that doesn't mean I can forgive myself!" The ex-Kaiser's voice was venhement. "These Digimon won't forgive me for what I've done to them. I don't belong here anymore, Daisuke. You've got what you wanted, in the end--I'm leaving, I'm going home, and I'm shutting down this little empire of mine before I step into the portal for the last time. I'm going to home to an overprotective family who beleives I'm my dead brother, a school where I'm hated for being so smart, and a life where I never have a bit of privacy. _What more do you want from me?_" 

"I want to help," Daisuke replied, his voice firm. "I want to be your friend." 

Ken's breath caught in his throat. "But Daisuke...what about the other Chosen?" 

"It's no problem." Daisuke smiled. "They'll respect my decision, although it might take some time. And the way you've treated me has just made me more determined to win your friendship." 

A small smile graced Ken's pale face. Daisuke grinned widely. "Now there's the Ken I wanted to see!" 

"All right, Daisuke," Ken whispered, offering his hand to Daisuke the same way he had three days previous. "I accept your offer, of help, and frienship." 

As he spoke the words Ken felt a tingling go through his body, an unfamiliar sensation. Daisuke jumped slightly and removed his D-3 from its clip, wtaching in awe as the soft blue light it emitted poured into the ex-Kaiser's small frame. Ken's own device lended its pink glow to Friendship's effort. Daisuke gasped. "Ken...?" 

When the light dissipated, Ichijouji Ken stood before him, clad in his grey Tamachi uniform. The tattered jumpsuit that the Kaiser had worn was nowhere to bee seen; and the wild hairstyle that the despot had sported had clamed into a soft sheet of indigo that fell chin-length against a pale face. Ken raised a shocked hand and ran it through the silken tresses. 

"Well...I guess that's the end of the Digimon Kaiser, hey?" Daisuke grinned. 

"So it seems. It's rather like...a weight has been lifted from my shoulders." Ken smiled tiredly. 

"What's that?" 

"Huh?" 

Daisuke stepped behind Ken and observed him curiously. The Dark D-3 had continued to glow, clipped to Ken's belt in the same place it had rested on the jumpsuit. However, there was another source; a small spot on the back of Ken's neck was also emitting rose light. Wormmon gasped. "The seed!" As Daisuke watched in fascination, the two light sources collocated on Ken's left hand and then suddenly disappeared, leaving a tiny square object on his palm. 

"What's that?" Daisuke peered at it. "Weird..." 

"I'm not entirely sure," Ken admitted. 

Wormmon strained to see what his partner was holding. "Show me, Ken-chan?" Ken held the pink square out for Wormmon to see. "Oh! It looks like one of the ancient Crests from the Digital Legends!" 

"A crest?" Daisuke looked again. "I don't recognize the symbol." 

"It's Kindness," Wormmon said proudly, nuzzling his human's leg. "It must be yours, Ken." 

"Mine?" Ken stared in disbeleif. "But...why? I've been anything _but_ kind." 

"The Crests represent inborn traits, Ken," Daisuke replied. "Hikari once told me that a Chosen receives their Crest or their Dejimental after acting on that inborn trait." 

"It was inside you all along," Wormmon said happily. "You just had to bring it out." 

Ken felt geniuinely happy for the first time in many, many months. "Thank you," he whispered aloud, unable to express the gratitude he felt towards the people who had brought this sense of closure to him. 

@~*~@~*~@~*~@~*~@~*~@~*~@~*~@ 

It only took an hour to disable the systems in the Kaiser's base and set al the slaves free. The Dark Towers would be difficult and time-consuming, but Daisuke was confident that the Chosen would be able to knock them all down in no time at all. Ken secretly planned to return to the Digital World and destroy as many Towers as possible, as his penance for causing the destruction he had. 

With the push of a button Ken shut down all power to the base except the main computer, and initiated the self-destruct sequence. A woman's voice blandly informed him that the base would be destroyed in T minus 30 seconds. 

Ken took a last look around, holding Wormmon tightly to his chest. "It's all over." 

"Yeah." The virus-type's blue eyes seemed torn between sadness and joy. "I hope we come back to this world together someday, Ken-chan." 

"Don't worry, my friend. I think that maybe there's more work for me to do here. This world...needs to heal. And I want to help." 

"I'm glad." 

Daisuke, with V-mon at his side, looked at Ken with a grin. "Are you ready, Ichijouji?" 

"Is that a challenge, Motomiya?" 

"An invitation." 

Ken smiled genuinely. "Let's go home." 

The Digital Gate opened in a brilliant flash of light and the two boys disappeared. A moment later the Kaiser's base erupted in flames, heat racking the core, and exploded into millions of particles of Digital data. 

For a nanosecond, floating between Earth and the Digital World, Ichijouji Ken felt the destruction of the last stand of the Digimon Kaiser, and breathed freely for the first time in three years. It was over. 

_And I'm going home._

  
  
  
~the end 

Any and all feedback is appreciated, as usual. I know some of you were hoping for Kensuke, but I think the decision was made back in chapter 2 with the first reviews I got. This was definitely leaning towards friendship (although really you can take it however way you want.) If you're still looking for Kensuke and Kaizer-y goodness, go and have a look at 'Sadness-Colored Sandglass' (http://www.fanfiction.net/read.php?storyid=229476) or 'Tomodachi.' 

Thanks for reading this far, everyone--I really enjoyed writing this story. I hope you all liked the ending. (Look, my punctuation has returned--what happened there?) There may be an epilogue in store; though I'm not sure when, but if you want to add me to your AuthorAlert list (I have Support Services) then you'll receive an e-mail when it's complete. It'll probably be my next project, unless I take on the rest of 'Silver' first. Again, thanks for reading everyone. :-) 


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